N4843W
New member
SE MI
- Aircraft Year
- 1977
- Aircraft Type
- 114
- Reg Number
- N4843W
- Serial Number
- 14173
so I get a line on an old 40' X 60' hangar for sale at Ann Arbor, which is a smaller but quite busy airport and still maintains a tower courtesy of the University of Michigan. My wife and I plan to sell the big house and buy a loft in Ann Arbor, but I need a hangar, a place for my workshop and a decent-sized office. There would be no room at the loft for my stuff and she would need for me to have a place to go as much as I would. It is located perfectly, at the approach end of Runway 24. Ideal for sitting out watching planes and there is a lot of student operations. This hangar looks like crap, all corrugated roof and siding rusty, terrible doors, the entire skin and roof has to be stripped and new doors installed, then there is the build-out of the office, workshop, insulation, lights etc. etc. But the slab is in decent shape and the steel structure both walls and roof are in good shape. And the price is $12K. Now, a good hanger like this could easilly cost $80 - $100k, but calc it out and for $50K, allowing for over-runs, I can make this place fantastic. So my son and I are going to buy it together and overhaul it.
But it turns out there are TWO of these side by side, with no wall in between, but independently owned. That is almost 5,000 sq ft. The guy I am dealing with contacts the other guy to see if he wants to sell. All he has in it is an old car under a tarp and some junk. No planes on either side. So I tell them we will buy them both for $25K. Then we will rent one half to a King Air or something else big to pay the additional load. The city airport manager loves the plan, because it is an eyesore and says they will be "helpful." So guess what? Today I get an email from the original seller saying the guy who owns the other side loves my plans so much, that he is buying the other one and doing it all himself, so he can resell it. They are friends and it is a done deal. Party's over.
Ahhhhhhhh ... would have been the most perfect hangar-shop-office hangout in a perfect location. I am kind of sick about it. Deals like that in the location you want just don'd come along.
But it turns out there are TWO of these side by side, with no wall in between, but independently owned. That is almost 5,000 sq ft. The guy I am dealing with contacts the other guy to see if he wants to sell. All he has in it is an old car under a tarp and some junk. No planes on either side. So I tell them we will buy them both for $25K. Then we will rent one half to a King Air or something else big to pay the additional load. The city airport manager loves the plan, because it is an eyesore and says they will be "helpful." So guess what? Today I get an email from the original seller saying the guy who owns the other side loves my plans so much, that he is buying the other one and doing it all himself, so he can resell it. They are friends and it is a done deal. Party's over.
Ahhhhhhhh ... would have been the most perfect hangar-shop-office hangout in a perfect location. I am kind of sick about it. Deals like that in the location you want just don'd come along.
Last edited:
